LOVE CONNECTION D’IBIZA A NIGHT WHEN MADRID SURRENDERED TO THE SPIRIT OF IBIZA
WHAT IF A NIGHT COULD BECOME A MEMORY?
On August 29th, ABYA Restaurant, inside Madrid’s historic Palacio de Saldaña, became the setting for a night where music, gastronomy, art and emotion came together to celebrate 25 years of Love Connection D’Ibiza. A night that is difficult to explain in words, but very easy to remember with the heart.
There are nights that simply happen.
And then there are nights that seem destined to remain in your memory.
August 29th was one of them.
The magnificent Palacio de Saldaña opened its doors for a new edition of Love Connection D’Ibiza, a celebration that for 25 years has championed a different way of experiencing music, encounters and that unmistakable spirit of Ibiza that knows no borders.
This time, the setting was ABYA Restaurant, a place where architecture, gastronomy and elegance created the perfect backdrop for an experience that began slowly, almost quietly, and ended as a genuine celebration shared by everyone in the room.
PAUL ROSS: MUSIC AS A WAY OF CONNECTING
Paul Ross, founder and creator of Love Connection D’Ibiza, DJ and producer did not simply come to play music.
He came to share his music.
Throughout his performance, he delighted the audience with his latest productions, once again revealing his distinctive musical identity and his remarkable ability to connect with those on the other side of the booth.
Track after track, his own productions filled the room, and the response from the audience was immediate.
Arms went up.
Feet stopped standing still.
Smiles spread across the room.
And little by little, the elegant dinner became a celebration where nobody wanted to remain on the sidelines.
Paul Ross once again demonstrated that behind the DJ there is also a producer, a creator and an artist capable of transforming his own emotions into music and taking them directly to the hearts of those listening.
And that night, he did exactly that.
THE LAST DANCE
When it seemed that the night had already given everything it had, Esther Bauman returned to join Paul Ross.
And then came the moment that would become one of the defining memories of the evening.
“Last Dance”, by Donna Summer.
The first note was enough.
The audience responded.
And what happened next needed no script.
Everyone singing.
Everyone jumping.
Everyone dancing.
Arms in the air.
Voices united.
Laughter.
Embraces.
A contagious energy moving through the entire space.
For a few minutes, the different floors of ABYA seemed to become one single dance floor.
There were no tables.
No distances.
No spectators.
Only people sharing the same emotion.
And perhaps that is the true meaning of Love Connection.
Connection.
Four worlds.
One connection.
WHEN THE MUSIC BEGINS TO SPEAK
The evening began with RUVEN, DJ and producer, who gradually built the atmosphere with his distinctive organic sound. Never rushing, allowing every texture to find its place, his music accompanied the first encounters, conversations and opening toasts.
WHEN THE MUSIC BEGINS TO SPEAK
The evening began with RUVEN, DJ and producer, who gradually built the atmosphere with his distinctive organic sound. Never rushing, allowing every texture to find its place, his music accompanied the first encounters, conversations and opening toasts.
ART BECAME PART OF THE NIGHT
But Love Connection D’Ibiza wanted to go beyond music.
Throughout the evening, guests were also invited to discover the photographic exhibition by Daniel Pierre, a visual journey built around the striking contrast between two extraordinary territories: the seas of Iceland and South Africa.
Two places separated by thousands of kilometres. Two oceans. Two different ways of seeing the world.
Through his photographs, Daniel Pierre captured far more than landscapes.
He captured moods.
Immensity.
Solitude.
Strength.
Fragility.
The untamed beauty of nature.
His images were deep, evocative, powerful and filled with sensitivity photographs that seemed to invite the viewer to stop for a moment and look beyond the image itself.
The coldness of Iceland against the light of South Africa.
Silence against movement.
Stillness against force.
An exhibition that brought an emotional and poetic dimension to the evening, perfectly aligned with the spirit of Love Connection.
FROM DINNER TO THE DANCE FLOOR
Then came Pumbum, DJ and producer, who began transforming the atmosphere with an organic, melodic sound full of texture and emotion.
What had begun as an elegant gastronomic evening slowly became a celebration.
First came the subtle movements.
Then the whole body.
Conversations gave way to dancing.
Faces began to reflect that beautiful combination of happiness, freedom and complicity that appears when people stop looking at the clock and simply allow themselves to enjoy the moment.
The dance floor began to fill.
And the energy kept rising.
WHEN LIVE MUSIC MEETS THE TABLE
While the photographs spoke in silence, the music continued its journey.
Saxophonist Carlos Collins brought the live performance into the different spaces of the restaurant, appearing among guests on the various floors and surprising diners with his performances.
There was no distance between artist and audience.
The music was literally among the tables.
And then came one of the most powerful voices of the evening.
Esther Bauman.
Her presence transformed the atmosphere completely.
Her powerful voice filled the spaces of ABYA and created one of the most emotional moments of the night with her interpretation of “My Way.”
For a few moments, conversations stopped.
Every eye turned towards her.
And when she finished, the applause said everything.
Spontaneous, intense and heartfelt applause.
The kind that comes naturally when something has genuinely moved you.
A NIGHT CARED FOR DOWN TO THE LAST DETAIL
THE CONNECTION
The experience was completed by the extraordinary culinary offering of ABYA Restaurant, where every dish became another part of the story.
Sophisticated, carefully crafted and surprising gastronomy, combined with the warmth and attention of the entire service team, ensured that guests enjoyed every moment of the evening.
Waiters, hosts and the entire team were attentive to every detail.
And at the heart of it all was Bárbara, Director of ABYA, always approachable, always smiling, and with that rare ability to make a complex evening feel effortless.
We were also delighted to welcome our friends and colleagues from Food Design Magazine, who joined us throughout the evening, conducting interviews with some of the night’s protagonists and helping capture and share the stories behind the celebration.
When a night ends like this, there is very little left to add.
Perhaps only one thing:
Thank you.
Thank you to the artists.
To RUVEN.
To Brisa Then.
To Pumbum.
To Carlos Collins.
To Esther Bauman.
To Paul Ross.
To Daniel Pierre, for bringing images and emotions to the places where words could not reach.
To the entire ABYA team.
To Bárbara.
To Food Design Magazine.
And, above all, to every person who chose to be there.
To our friends.
To those who believed.
To those who came to celebrate.
To those who danced.
To those who sang.
To those who applauded.
To those who made every moment their own.
Because we can create a stage.
We can bring together extraordinary artists.
We can prepare exceptional gastronomy.
We can take care of every detail.
But there is something that can never be manufactured:
the emotion that is born when people truly connect.
And that is what happened on August 29th at the Palacio de Saldaña.
For a few hours, the spirit of Ibiza travelled once again.
This time, to Madrid.
And when the music ended, when the last lights faded and the final dance came to an end, one feeling remained in the air — the feeling that only truly special nights leave behind.
The feeling of having experienced something.
Of having been part of something.
Of having shared something that can never quite happen in exactly the same way again.
Although, deep down, we were all thinking the same thing.
Let it happen again.
Because some nights are remembered.
And some nights ask for only one thing:
ONE MORE TIME
Thank you for your support, for being there, and for your love.
Thank you for making Love Connection D’Ibiza possible.
See you at the next connection